how to polish ?? Plastic ??

[Rsurfer]

When you use something like M205 on tail lights or head lights, do you need to recoat them with a UV protectant?

Yes, when you polish, you are removing the factory UV protectant. I've found Dlux to be an excellent UV protector.

[Eldorado2k]

There’s different levels of polishing though.. And you can improve the look of your headlights by giving them a quik polishing by hand without removing the factory UV coating. [especially effective if your lights are fairly new and just need very minor cleaning] In this case, you’d simply be adding a layer of protection on top of the layer of factory coating which is still there.

If you were to do a more aggressive level of polishing/restoration then you’d be looking at re sealing on a level nearing that of the original coating that was originally on the headlights. And even then, completely removing the original coating can range from fairly easy to next to impossible even with aggressive sanding. [i.e. Corvette headlights]

[TTQ B4U]

Just as an FYI, I work in the optical industry and Zeiss is one manufacturer of the equipment that applies the UV Coatings to headlight lenses. Thicknesses vary but can range from 20-80 microns or roughly 1-3 mils.

[jkrig]

Another good one is Optimum Hyper polish, great on glossy or smooth matte plastic trim.....

[luckydawg]

Just as an FYI, I work in the optical industry

Can you get a discount on some Zeiss glass???

[Calendyr]

When you use something like M205 on tail lights or head lights, do you need to recoat them with a UV protectant?

Polishing will not remove enough clearcoat to need a re-coating. On the other hand, adding a coating or sealant is always a great idea to help protect the piece you polished. So I would certainly recommend you do even if it is not needed as such.

[mwoywod]

Whether I'm polishing fiberglass golf cart bodies, polycarbonate/acrylic winshields, smooth porous plastic trim on cars, rubber trim, hard plastic A B & C pillars, taillights, headlights, vinyl windows, or wood veneers on the interior, the best product I've found is HD Polish+

It's the best value and most versatile finishing polish on the market and even though it uses SMAT abrasives like M205 it finishes better than most DAT finishing polishes without being oily. There are SO many different forms of plastic on a vehicle and IME HD Polish+ is so amazing on these surfaces it could easily be marketed as a dedicated "Plastic Polish"

[UncleDavy]

I am glad that I found this thread. I am looking to polish the black exterior pillars on the Ford Explorer and I was considering a dedicated plastic polish. With the Memorial Day sale I am looking at purchasing a bunch of things. I just added the HD Polish+ to the shopping list. Thanks for the recommendation.

[DaveT435]

I would recommend putting the most scratch resistant coating you know of on it when you are done, or never touch it with anything air dry only. I assume it's the same plastic as between the windows on my wife's F-150. That stuff scratches so easy, it's crazy!

[UncleDavy]

I used the HD Polish + on the plastic pillars of the Ford Explorer and I was happy with the results. However I used a power drill with a wool pad and I now have swirls instead of scratches. I will go over it again with my Porter Cable but the scratches are gone. One pillar had an abrasion that I thought would never come out but it is now gone.